A weekend snowstorm lingered into Monday, causing several local school districts to cancel all classes as some East Idahoans braved their third day without electricity.

As the storm finally exited the region on Monday afternoon, the National Weather Service was issuing winter weather advisories and winter storm warnings for East Idaho to alert the public about the next snowstorm, expected to arrive Tuesday morning and continue through Wednesday morning.

With the big new storm looming, Idaho Power and Rocky Mountain Power each reported about 100 of their East Idaho customers were still without electricity as of Monday afternoon.

At the peak of the power outages on Saturday, nearly 20,000 of the utilities’ local customers were in the dark as a result of the major winter storm that dumped several inches of snow on East Idaho’s higher and lower elevations and brought down tree branches and power lines with relentless 60 mph winds.

Emergency warming shelters were opened Saturday night at local schools to give those without power warm places to stay.

Several local roads were temporarily shut down this weekend because of the snowstorm and the whiteout conditions it created, and fallen branches damaged homes and vehicles, especially in the Pocatello area.

The storm arrived in East Idaho on Friday afternoon and then continued on Saturday and Sunday before finally exiting the region on Monday.

The National Weather Service reported that Pocatello broke its two-day precipitation record on Friday, March 1, and Saturday, March 2, when 2.01 inches of water equivalent precipitation fell on Pocatello Regional Airport in the form of snow.

The previous two-day precipitation record for Pocatello was 1.86 inches set on June 21 and 22, 1948.

On Friday alone, Pocatello received 1.16 inches of water equivalent precipitation, which is the average amount the Gate City receives for the entire month of March, the weather service said.

The storm dumped over 9 inches of snow on Pocatello on Friday and Saturday, moving the current winter season to sixth snowiest in the city’s history.

Aberdeen School District 58, American Falls School District 381, Pocatello-Chubbuck School District 25, Blackfoot School District 55, Firth School District 59 and Snake River School District 52 all announced Sunday that their schools would be closed on Monday due to the snowy conditions and the fact hundreds of local homes and businesses were still without electricity at that time.

The storm also caused numerous wrecks on local roads, many involving injuries. There were so many crashes on Interstate 15 in Pocatello on Saturday that the freeway was temporarily shut down.

The incoming storm is forecast to hit the Bone, Emigration Summit, Palisades, Swan Valley, Victor, Ashton, Tetonia, Driggs and Island Park areas hardest. Up to 10 to 12 inches of snow could fall on those communities Tuesday morning through Wednesday morning.

The rest of East Idaho, including Pocatello, Chubbuck, American Falls, Aberdeen, Preston, Lava Hot Springs, Malad, Soda Springs, Montpelier, Fort Hall, Blackfoot, Idaho Falls, Ammon, Rigby and Rexburg, could receive up to 5 or 6 inches of snow from the storm.

The storm could dump as much as 20 inches of snow on East Idaho’s higher mountains and is forecast to hammer the entire region with 45 mph winds.

“Travel could be very difficult to impossible,” the weather service stated in its winter storm warnings for East Idaho. “Patchy blowing snow could significantly reduce visibility. The hazardous conditions could impact the morning or evening commute. If you must travel, keep an extra flashlight, food and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency.”

Elsewhere in the state, winter weather advisories are in effect in the central Idaho mountains including Stanley, Sun Valley, Ketchum and Hailey as well as in south central and southwest Idaho including Boise and Mountain Home.

Outside of Idaho, winter weather warnings are in effect in Oregon, Washington state, Montana, Wyoming and Utah because of the storm.